When Caged Birds Sing, and Maybe Lay Eggs?
by Annacat101
Summary: When Tenten finds out she is infertile, Neji will do anything to give her a child, even if he has to carry it himself. Placed after the time-skip, i.e no Sasuke but anything else goes! WARNING: M-preg!
1. I Lost Her

Neji had ran, all the way from the kitchen, Chinese food with a side of pickled plums forgotten at the heart-wrenching scream from upstairs, the sound of a body hitting the floor, the cloying scent of blood filling the air. He stood now, stunned, numbing horror coursing through him for his wife, normally orderly brown hair in disarray about tear-streaked face, their ends a dark red from the pool of blood surrounding her; no, coming from her, as she cried with an arm wrapped around her small, far too small waist. He knew, knew even before she choked back her sobs enough to whisper the damning words, words to crush their hope and the life born between them.

"_I lost her, Neji, I lost the baby"_

* * *

"I'm sorry, Tenten, Neji, but this was not a one-time occurrence,"

They were in the hospital, white walls on white floors on white faces, the greatest medic-nin of all pronouncing their fate, words carefully construed in order to inflict the least pain, his veins bulging as he scanned his wife, confirming with his own white eyes the truth of her statement.

"Occasionally infertility will occur in female shinobi*, especially those who excel in taijutsu. Due to the extensive training regime you have had since early childhood, it is unlikely that you will ever come to full term**,

"Forgive me, Tenten, I have searched and never found a cure, but believe me when I say I understand your pain. If there is anything you need, let me help..."

Neji shook his head dumbly, holding his shivering wife in his hands. They had been so close, just 3 more months. He allowed himself a small tear before teleporting from the hospital.

He tucked Tenten into bed, throwing out the cold lunch from a happier lifetime. A plan forming behind impassive white eyes, Neji set the traps before heading out to the busiest place in town at this time of night, the Ichiraku Ramen Bar. A certain blonde shinobi had a debt to be reminded of, and a jutsu which would get Tenten her child, even if Neji would have to walk through Hell, pregnancy and all, to do it.

*I debated on whether or not to call Tenten a kunoichi or female shinobi, but went with the latter for kunoichi were in the real world undercover ninjas, i.e. assasins, and the like, and would not have used the showy weapons jutsus as Tenten does.

**Physical stress and low body fat content (Tenten was 93 lbs. in the first part and 104 lbs. at 17 years of age) can also be contributing factors that lead to an absence of menstruation and ovulation, resulting in infertility.


	2. Hook, Line, And Sinker

"'Sup Neji"

The perpetually smiling blonde laughed. How he managed to say even that with his current ramen inhalation was a mystery. But then again nothing about Naruto was easy to figure out. One moment he was the dead-last, weak and useless, and the next he was tearing down the cage Neji had thought was impenetrable, the fate so inescapable a mere gossamer web of lies and denial.

But now was not time to reminisce, and if Neji wanted to get anything from Naruto short of buying Ichirakus for his personal lunch stand, he had to do some careful dropping of hints, and reminders of debt. Fortunately, Sakura was there, and any embarrassment on Naruto's part would cause him to cave quickly.

"I heard that the lake by the women's onsen is a great place to visit for some, ahhh, research, don't you think, Naruto?"

Today was a day of many firsts, it seemed, Naruto choking on ramen, Neji asking the now-hacking blonde for a favor, Tenten lying listless _dontthinkaboutit _and alone _dontthinkaboutit _humming a lullaby holding the useless rattle to her too-flat belly.

"Unless you want me to share that research, I would think-"

"Alright! Lets go!"

The blonde's proud statement, so familar, was marred by the furtive pink across his cheeks and the realization of only TWO bowls of ramen having been eaten. Sakura furrowed her brow at him but otherwise remained unsuspicious as they walked off. That would not last long if Naruto didn't cooperate. Neji smirked.

_Hook_

"Eh heh. I KNEW those pictures had disappeared somewhere but..."

_Line_

"I need you to teach me Sexy-No-Jutsu."

_Sinker_

*thump*

At times like these he would acknowledge that the copying abilities of the Sharingan is almost better than the Byakugan. Almost. And yet the look on Naruto's shocked face, the whisker-scars alternately turning red and white with shock and embarassement, was worth the fuss.

Though he'd never admit it.

Obviously.


	3. Is that a KUNAI tenting your pants?

"So."

The word hung between them like fly trapped in amber, finally shown the light of day behind a small hillock on the training field. Naruto bounced slightly, and while that was not uncommon, to Neji's trained eye the blonde could have been shouting and his discomfort would be just as evident.

"You're sure about this, right?"

A slight inclination of the head was all the answer given, no need for Naruto to know he was soaring, flying on unchained wings toward the speck of hope like a shining star, Tenten's smile the brightest sun he would brave all of Hell for to get a glimpse of. He would make her a parent, the cradle filled with a child free from the mark across his own forehead. His cousin, half-sister by the blood running through their veins*, acting as clan head while her father lay in a coma, had forbidden any more sealings. Backed with the political power of her fiance; who knew the Inuzuka would ever be worth anything?, she had overridden the council. Of course, there would be hell to pay when his uncle woke up, but under law all of his children would be safe, now and forever.

"Uhh... You still there?"

"Hmm? Wha- Oh yeah. I mean, yes."

Naruto still looked at him strangely, but that was as much of an affirmation as anyone could expect to get from the stoic Hyuuga, so he dove right into the crux of the problem.

"Alright, so I'm sure you have figured out by now that the Sexy-no-Jutsu is an actual change, not a henge. This is because of err... my special chakra and,"

"The Kyuubi."

"Yeah, that's right. Wait, how'd you know?"

"Records, and I recognized during the chuunin exams that you had the same chakra type as the Kazekage, who we learned later was a jinchuriki."

"Right... Anyway, so my enhanced chakra allows me to maintain the change, but this would be pretty much impossible for anyone else. I've thought about it, however, and fortunately your ability to modulate and concentrate your chakra in particular spots will be an asset. You can control the chakra so all it affects is the womb, but you'll probably want to commit to the full change during later pregnancy, since your center of gravity will need to change to the hips**, and the widening of the pelvis will be easier during birth."

Neji stared in wonder. This was the first time since the fateful (A/N: ha! Ironic! Didn't even realize the pun until I reread it) day years ago at the Chuunin Exams, that Naruto had been completely logical and serious, and even more surprising was the fact that Naruto had even thought about it before opening his mouth.

"To keep the child and jutsu for nine months, you'll need extra chakra just to stay alive. I can give you some, and we can ask Baa-chan what the regular dosage should be."

Scratch that. Who was this and what has he done with Uzumaki Naruto?

"And also... umm... Who's gonna knock you up? I mean, Tenten packs a lot of weapons but this time it's REALLY a kunai tenting her pants."

Never mind, this was Naruto standing before him, soon to be flat on his ass for even THINKING about Tenten like she's some common-

_Oh..._

"Fuck"

* * *

* Since Hizashi and Hiashi are twins, their DNA is the exact same. http: // www. twin-pregnancy-and-beyond .com /identical-twins-or-fraternal-twins. html

** During pregnancy, a woman's center of gravity will shift to the extra vertebrae in the lower back in order to keep balance.

http: // www. msnbc. msn. com/id/22217822/ns/health-pregnancy/

Hey!

I will continue writing from Neji's POV but might (later on in the story) have a few drabbles from Tenten or someone else's POV. If anyone has any suggestions, please PM me or review (you know you want to :) In my perfect world you enjoyed this story so much that you check out my other stories (considerably darker than this one, but you'd still like them), JKJK just getting viewers makes me happy XD

-Annie


	4. In the Springtime of our Youth

The young shinobi slumped, as much as any branch-family Hyuuga would, against the alley wall, the only sign of his depression a bare inclination of his head and a slight slope to the shoulders. But to his few close friends it screamed "Leave me alone! My life is over!" He prayed no one would see him, or at least know him well to notice his misery. Or care. Unfortunately for Neji, someone who filled all those requirements and more bounded along and stood colorful and bright against the drab walls.

"Ah, Neji, what a YOUTHFUL day it is today! One to be spent Enjoying our Happiness, not hiding in the UNYOUTHFULLY Dark and Depressing Alley !"

To the uninformed, Rock Lee's greeting would have seemed the same as six years ago, all of them 12-year-old Genin who could not see beyond their own noses, even Neji with his Byakagun blind as the rest. But they were older, and behind those wide eyes and careless words lay understanding. Lee noticed something was amiss, and confronted him in his usual way. Giving Neji room to shrug the green-clad Jounin off, not that he would leave the Hyuuga alone, anyway.

Neji sighed, better the let the truth out now, Lee would hear about it from Sakura later. She had been one of the medic-nin working on his wife, and while Sakura did not see Tenten personally, she filed the reports and would undoubtably read them. Her boyfriend would be the first to know, being one of Team Gai himself.

"Tenten is fine, but she lost the baby."

"Neji, I'm so... But it will be All Right, for in the Springtime of Our Youth We can Prevail!"

_Neji, I'm so sorry. But you can't let this get you down, you must be strong for Tenten, she needs to realize that this isn't the end_. Neji was fluent in Gai/Rock Lee speech, the translation almost instantaneous. Walking beside Lee to a less populated part of town, he responded to the actual words.

"Tsunade-sama said Tenten is infertile. I had planned to use the Sexy-no-Jutsu in order to carry the child for her, but we have no sperm donor."

People often equated Rock Lee with Naruto, in their boundless energy and similarly open and extremely stubborn natures. But Rock Lee didn't even blink, much less choke, at the grand reveal and merely carried on, perhaps a bit more boisterous than before.

"But in the Springtime of our Youth, Anything is Possible!"

"Not now, Lee, not anymore."

The setting sun sparkled on Lee's teeth, Neji long ago classified the strange power Lee and Gai had over the time of day as a fact of life, and the jounin took the patented " One Thumb Up: We Can Do This!" stance before him.

"But Sakura-chan is a medic-nin, we can take this Problem to her, and Perhaps she can Restore you and Tenten to your Youthful Vitality and Spirit!"

At once Neji's heart leapt to his throat, _could it be? is it possible?_

Rock Lee kept talking, though Neji was long past caring, bounding across the rooftops to the kunoichi's apartment. Neji didn't bother with the lock, though his former teammate had the key, instead blasting it apart with a surge of white chakra.

"You're lucky that I disabled the traps, Neji-san, or else that would have ended very, very badly."

"Hnn."

"You're also lucky I know what's going on, Naruto told me. And I think I can help."

Sasuke's betrayal had aged her, green eyes hardened like dull emeralds, no longer grass to bend and break with the smallest footfall. Lee was a blessing to her, Neji thought, if he were poetic like Hinata nee-chan he would say she had been like a fragile sapling, grown into a great tree. And with Lee and his Springtime of Youth she had just begun to flower, open up and become truly beautiful.

"We have started a new process at the hospital. It is called in vitro fertilization. Normally it is used to pick the best sperm and egg in clans with bloodline traits, but theoretically it can be used to take a female egg and a male sperm and transplant them into a new body. This would not work for Tenten, as her body is physically infertile, and would reject the child no matter how much chakra we poured into her. You, on the other hand, would be able to carry the child to full term."

Hope flowed into Neji, his white eyes widening then closing with relief. He would be able to save Tenten. All he had to do was talk to her and convince her that this was right, everything would be alright. Rock Lee struck his "Both Thumbs Up: Strong/Protective Pose"

"And never fear, Neji! We shall be as Discreet as Possible until you are ready to share your Youthful Happiness with the Rest of the Village, as you Blossom in the Blessing of True Love and-"

_Everything's going to be alright, Neji. We'll protect you from the villager's scorn and back-talking until they can see what a wonderful thing it is. And besides, anyone else who _DOESN'T_ see it our way will find it very hard to see anything with their head up their-_

"Lee..."

"Yes, my most Youthful Comrade?"

"I am being happy."

"And?"

"Quiet is conducive to my happiness."

"So?"

"You are not quiet."

"Oh, of course! Then I shall show my Happiness for you both in a purely Physical and Platonic Manner!"

"Wait, wha-?"

Even with his all-seeing eyes, being able to track a shinobi means little when the fastest and most youthful Taijutsu Master in Konoha decides to give you a hug.

A Very Manly Hug.

But still a **hug_._**

_"Mmph!"_

_

* * *

_

A/N

Whew. There goes another one. I'm sorry if the beginning was a tad dark, I wanted to wallow in extreme Angsty!Neji. Its fun! ^u^ I tried to make up for it in the end, I totally just saw the picture of Lee glomping stoic Neji: "I think Someone needs a hug..." "Oh S**T RUN AWAY!" Again, NO ONE IS REVIEWING! Except for librarycat9 *hugz and offers cookies*. So that means I don't know if anyone wants a different POV. I'll keep writing, regardless, because I can't stand it when people leave stories hostage for reviews *glowers. you KNOW it if I'm talking to you* JKJK.

LOL so TELL ME what you want and I WILL DELIVER! I make a most Youthful Promise! (I hate talking in Rock Lee's voice. Please tell me if it sucked, and if it did, what I can do to make it better. I tried to make it seem realistic, after all they are 18. I wanted to retain the same characteristics while giving them a new maturity.)

And yes, Sakura and Lee are together. While I don't think they should or ever would get together *Gaara/Lee forever XD* it helps my storyline (rough though it may be) along greatly. *Favorite and you'll see why in the updates.* :)

-Annie

P.S. I realized that the timeline might be a bit confusing, so here it is:

Neji and Tenten are about to have an early dinner, about 4 pm where she loses the baby.

They go to the hospital for about 2 hours.

Neji finds Naruto and tells him what he wants, at around 7 pm, after taking Tenten home.

The next day, Neji and Naruto meet up approximately during lunch time and talk.

Neji wanders around Konoha for a few hours, and at about 4:00 pm Rock Lee finds him, and takes him to Sakura.


End file.
